Jose Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians agree on 5-year, $124M deal

CLEVELAND  — All-Star third baseman José Ramírez and the Cleveland Guardians have reached agreement on a five-year, $124 million contract extension on the eve of opening day, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Ramírez's deal runs through the 2028 season, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because numerous details need to be finalized. The Guardians open the 2022 season in Kansas City on Thursday.

The team and Ramírez’s representatives had been in talks about an extension for weeks at training camp in Arizona.

Cleveland owner Paul Dolan has been widely criticized for not spending during the offseason, and the Guardians have one of baseball's lowest payrolls.

But in the past few days, the team locked up Ramírez, one of the AL's best all-around players, and agreed to a five-year extension with closer Emmanuel Clase.

Ramírez's new deal doubles the largest contract Cleveland has ever given a player, topping the $60 million committed to slugger Edwin Encarnacion five years ago.

Ramírez had two years left on a five-year, $26 million contract extension he signed in 2016. That deal included two team options — $12 million in 2022 and $14 million next season — that made him the highest-paid player on Cleveland's roster.

The 29-year-old Ramírez had expressed a desire to spend the remainder of his career with Cleveland, which signed the Dominican native as a teenager in 2009.

A three-time All-Star, Ramírez batted .266 with 36 homers and 103 RBIs last season. He's finished in the top three in MVP voting three times in the past five seasons.